Updated MLB power rankings: Dodgers still streaking as postseason nears
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With roughly a month left in the regular season, some teams are positioning themselves for postseason play, while others are battling to reach the playoffs. Below are the teams that sit atop the latest MLB power rankings.
1. Atlanta Braves (84-45)
Still possessing the league’s best record, the Atlanta Braves have won seven of their last 10 games and have a commanding 12.5-game lead in the NL East over the second place Philadelphia Phillies. Seven Braves have hit at least 20 home runs this season, led by first baseman Matt Olson (43 home runs), who sits one off the league lead in homers behind superstar pitcher and slugger Shohei Ohtani (44). As a team, the Braves (244 home runs) have hit 44 more home runs than the next closest team (Dodgers - 200 home runs).
2. Los Angeles Dodgers (80-49)
Winners of 21 of their last 25 games, the Los Angeles Dodgers are headed for an 11th straight postseason appearance. Dodgers superstars Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman are both having outstanding seasons at the plate, while Clayton Kershaw is once again the team’s top pitcher. After Kershaw, it will be interesting to see how the Dodgers’ pitchers fare in the postseason.
3. Tampa Bay Rays (75-51)
Despite annually having one of the lowest payrolls in baseball, the Tampa Bay Rays are surging toward a fifth straight postseason appearance. The Rays’ bats have helped them find success this season, as the team ranks top four in the league in batting average, RBI, home runs, hits and runs scored. Tampa Bay’s pitching staff isn’t too shabby either, as the team sits sixth in the league in ERA (3.87).
4. Baltimore Orioles (77-47)
The Baltimore Orioles haven’t reached the playoffs since 2016, a drought that will likely end this season. Baltimore leads the Rays by two games in the AL East, a division the Orioles haven’t won in nearly a decade. Thirteen Orioles are batting at least .240 this season, while the team doesn’t have a single player batting .300 or better. Nevertheless, Baltimore is in a good position to end their postseason drought and make noise once they get there.
5. Texas Rangers (73-57)
Locked in a heated battle for the AL West crown with the Houston Astros and Seattle Mariners, the Texas Rangers are also seeking their first postseason appearance since 2016. Spearheaded by the strength of their bats, Texas has scored the second-most runs in the league this season, ranking only behind the Braves. The Rangers still have three games against Houston and seven games against Seattle left on their regular season schedule.